Liverpool Ready £5m Bid for Ghana Winger - Report
Luis Suarez presses for Real Madrid switch after claiming lack of Champions League football at Anfield
Liverpool have made a £5m bid for FC Porto forward Christian Atsu, according to the Mail Online. The 21-year-old Ghanaian international made 25 appearances, in all competitions, for the Portuguese club last season.
The Reds may face competition from Tottenham, who were linked to Atsu in April and May. Andre Villas-Boas is engaged in a similar revamp of his attacking options, although Spurs' are presently more focused on central striking options.
Atsu's contract expires in 2014 and, according to the Guardian, has refused to sign an extension, making it likely he will leave the club this summer.
Brendan Rodgers is engaged in a substantial revamp of his attacking options, with Spanish youngster Iago Asaps in the bag and £23m Henrikh Mkhitaryan expected to follow. Spanish forward Luis Alberto, who impressed on loan to Barcelona B last season, is also a potential target, with the Sevilla player's agent, Enrique Rosado, confirming the Reds' interest.
The expenditure on new players will be partly funded by the £15m sale of England international Andy Carroll to West Ham United. The Guardian reports the former Newcastle United forward has passed his medical and is close to a formal announcement.
Luis Suarez Continues to Press for Exit
Meanwhile, speculation continues to surround the fate of the one goal scoring option Liverpool fans will want to retain. Uruguay international Luis Suarez scored 30 times last season, in all competitions, despite being banned for the final four games of the season for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic.
The former Ajax forward came under a barrage of criticism for his actions and was linked with a summer exit. The 26-year-old has since been vocal about his desire to leave Merseyside, explaining the combination of a harsh media and the lack of Champions League football were to blame.
"It is a big club on a global level, but we didn't qualify for the Champions League nor did we fight for the Premier League, which is where the club has to be. And the club knows that I have suffered and struggled with what I have had in the Press," Suarez explained.
"I always recognised my mistakes but they wrote a catalogue of incredible things about me, they used me as an excuse to sell newspapers. I talked to Ivanovic, I apologised to him and he accepted. What he forgave me for, others haven't," the South American concluded.
Suarez is presently in Brazil, with his national team, for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. Uruguay lost the opening match 1-2 to Spain; Suarez scored a late free kick. The former World Cup winners face Nigeira next, on Wednesday night.
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